The problems of positioning, aligning and interfacing a towed pipe string offshore to a previously installed pipe segment are substantial. Strings of relatively stiff, large diameter pipe, several miles in length, are assembled and tested at a suitable shore facility and then towed for end-to-end alignment and connection in water depths up to 2000 feet. On-bottom connection of such pipe is both expensive and time-consuming and requires that the candidate connection system be both technically and economically sound. While there is no single solution for all deepwater subsea connection situations, in accordance with the present invention a connection system has been developed that appears to solve many of the needs of the art.